Vietnamese in Malaysia celebrate national holidays

Hundreds of overseas Vietnamese (OVs) in Malaysia on April 22 gathered at the Vietnamese Embassy to commemorate Hung Kings (10th of third lunar month) and to celebrate Reunification Day (April 30).

Addressing the event, Ton Thi Ngoc Huong, charge d’affaires of Vietnam in Malaysia said that this month is an occasion for all Vietnamese people to recall the ancestors’ efforts to establish and protect the country.

She also expressed her hope that OVs in Malaysia will enhance solidarity, building a strong community.

A highlight of the event was a singing competition, participated in by many OVs. Vietnamese brides in Malaysia also received consultations from local lawyers.

The Vietnamese community in Malaysia has provided support for disadvantaged people as well as victims of natural disasters and soldiers in border and island regions over the years.

On this occasion, more than MYR2,000 (US$455) was raised for the construction of a multi-purpose house in Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelago.

Traditional Musical Instrument Solo and Ensemble Festival wraps up

The Traditional Musical Instrument Solo and Ensemble Festival concluded in the central province of Thanh Hoa on April 23 after nine days of competition.

The first prize went to artist Thach Mo Ly from the Khmer Bac Lieu General Arts University.

In addition, the organising board also presented certificates of merit to musicians and artists for their outstanding performances.

The event featured the participation of nearly 1,000 artists from 35 public art units, music academies, conservatories, institutions of cultural and art training across the country.

The festival offered visitors an opportunity to enjoy 80 traditional musical instruments performances at some 34 shows with 189 performances.

It aims to promote the values of national music, especially Vietnam’s traditional musical instruments, such as string instruments, wind instruments and percussion.

The festival is part of cultural activities to celebrate the cultural day of ethnic groups in Vietnam.

Activities held nationwide in response to Workers’ Month

A range of practical activities targeting labourers are being held nationwide in response to the 2017 Workers’ Month which will last until the end of May.

On April 23 at the Dai An Industrial Park in the northern province of Hai Duong, the Hai Duong Industrial Parks Trade Union held a ceremony to launch the 2017 Workers’ Month, as well as the Action Month for Occupational Safety and Health and the 2017 Workers' Day Festival, with the participation of over 1,000 local workers.

Speaking at the ceremony, Pham Hong Hai, Chairman of the Hai Duong Industrial Parks Trade Union asked its affiliated trade unions to coordinate with relevant agencies, units and enterprises to organise practical activities to ensure social welfare and support for employees.

He also urged to enhance the dissemination of extensive information on relevant laws, policies and other legal documents related to the legitimate rights and interests of employees, while facilitating sports and recreation activities for labourers and honouring exemplary staff members who have made significant contributions and employed creative approaches in their work.

On the occasion, the provincial Federation of Labour presented a gratitude house worth VND30 million to Vo Thi Nga, a worker from from Tinh Loi Garment Co., Ltd and 44 gifts to local disadvantaged employees.

The Hai Duong Industrial Parks’ Trade Union honoured its 15 typical unionists and presented 100 presents, each worth VND500,000, to local workers living in difficult circumstances. In addition, donors also donated dozens of gifts to labourers and hundreds of tickets for entertainment services for their children.

At the ceremony, the Legal Consultancy Office from Hai Duong Federation of Labour and the provincial Youth Support Centre provided free legal and health advice for workers.

* On the same day, the Tra Vinh Provincial Federation of Labour held a ceremony to launch the 2017 Workers’ Month in the Mekong Delta province.

In the spirit of “Enterprises considering labourers as valuable assets", the provincial Federation of Labour called for businesses to accompany and better care for local workers.

During the Workers’ Month, the local Federation of Labour will subsidise 300 trade union members and workers with a total cost of VND150 million and provide assistance to build 30 houses with at a total cost of VND915 million.

* The Quang Binh provincial Federation of Labour also launched the Workers’ Month with the theme "For trade unions’ members in difficult situation."

On the occasion, the provincial Federation of Labour presented gifts, loans and financial support to labourers living in difficult circumstances across the central province with a total amount of VND1.4 billion.

* The Quang Ninh provincial Federation of Labour held a ceremony to launch the Workers' Month and commended outstanding local labourers in 2016 with its Advanced Workers’ Awards.

Accordingly, Quang Ninh Workers’ Month will take place from April 15 to May 31, with many practical activities to be held, such as organising direct dialogues with the labour force, legal consultancy, equipping 20 law bookcases for grassroots trade unions, and strengthening inspection and supervision over the observance of labour legislation, social insurance and labour sanitation and safety.

The Workers’ Month was initiated in May 2012 at the request of the Party Secretariat with the goal of caring for and protecting the legitimate rights and interests of workers, as well as to build harmonious, stable and progressive labour relations within the enterprises.

Three new programs included in government rural development plan

The government’s rural development plan adds three more programs for the period 2016-2020. 

The new programs include  agricultural re-structuring, One Commune One Product (OCOP) and garden model. The northern province of Quang Ninh is the first locality to carry out the “One Commune One Product” program and the central province of Ha Tinh has build the exemplary garden which received the positive response from locals.

240 exemplary gardens were designed in Ha Tinh province during the plot period; now, the province has over 5,000 gardens of the kind, earning  income of VND55 million ($2,421) a garden. These gardens have met requirements such as proper design, providing safe agricultural produces, applying scientific advances and technologies and producing income five time higher than planting rice.

Local households create high quality products. Major products are food, beverage, herbs, textile and garment, souvenir, decorations, rural tourist services.

One Commune One Product (OCOP) and garden model are expected to make breakthrough for production in countryside.     

Hanoi students wins Special Award at 2017 National Physics Olympiad

Students of the Hanoi University of Science and Technology won the Special Prize at the 2017 National Physics Olympiad which was organized at Tan Trao University in Tuyen Quang province from April 21-23.

The organization board also presented 7 first prizes, 20 second prizes, 16 third prizes to units; certificates of merit to students who got the 1st, 2nd, 3rd positions and encouragement prize and 13 teachers who had outstanding contribution to the national physics Olympiads in five years.

This year’s competition attracted about 400 students from 44 teams throughout the country. The contest includes three parts including multi- choice test, experimental test and doing exercises. The organization board invited representatives of international universities and physical researchers of universities in the country to join the event.

The 2018 National Physics Olympiad will be held in Dong Nai University in Dong Nai Province. 

The National physics Olympiad is an annual activity which is co-organized by Ministry of Education and Training, Vietnam Union of Science & Technology Associations and Vietnam Physical Association.

HCM City’s Hoa Sen Vang Award for “Don Ca Tai Tu” kicked off

The Hoa sen vang (Golden Lotus) Award of the Ho Chi Minh City “Don Ca Tai Tu” (Southern Amateur Music) Festival 2017 has been kicked off.

The contest is open for art groups in the city. Every unit will give a 35-minute long performance, including instrumental and vocal items. The registrations for the festival are sent to the No. 97 Nguyen Thi Minh Khai Street in District 1 from now until May 2.

Performances honor the Communist Party of Vietnam, President Ho Chi Minh, national heroes, the armed forces, the country’s achievements in the cultural, social and economic development and new rural building.

Submissions also praise positive results and creativities in working and production, the national traditional beauty, Vietnamese people and patriotism.

The contest aims at keeping alive the traditional music and fostering a love for folk music among young people.

Young overseas intellectuals suggest development ideas

Many young Vietnamese intellectuals working in various fields in Switzerland shared their knowledge and gave suggestions on how to boost national development at a forum held in Geneva on April 22. 

The event also attracted Vietnam’s senior specialists at international organisations in Geneva such as the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the World Trade Organisation (WTO).

Master of IT Nguyen Hoang Minh, a former student of the Hanoi University of Science and Technology and currently an IT engineer at Sicpa Security Solutions, talked about Switzerland’s experience in developing an e-government by using technology to reform the apparatus and enhance managerial agencies’ capacity.

Energy and transport infrastructure engineer Trinh Ngoc Thanh, a consultant and project manager at Stucky – a leading company in hydropower and irrigation dams, delivered a speech on cooperation opportunities and challenges in hydropower and irrigation structure building and management between Vietnam and Switzerland.

Meanwhile, PhD in economics Hoang Ngoc Giang underlined the need to soon reach a knowledge economy and promote domestic production to a higher level in global value chains. He suggested Vietnam make venture investment in other nations, especially the most developed knowledge economies.

Regarding Vietnamese intellectuals working at international organisations, PhD Nguyen Nhat Linh from WHO analysed the role of Vietnamese specialists at such global bodies as WHO and WTO, adding that they have helped share Vietnam’s experience and strength in certain fields and raise its stature at international forums.

More Vietnamese people should work in UN agencies and global economic and financial institutions, Linh said, calling on Vietnamese intellectuals and specialists to have more confidence and determination to engage in international organisations’ activities. The Government should also provide better policy support to help them.

Concluding the forum, head of Vietnam’s Permanent Mission to the UN, WTO and other international organisations in Geneva - Ambassador Duong Chi Dung welcomed the opinions, including a proposal of setting up a permanent mechanism to connect Vietnamese intellectuals in Switzerland. 

He said exchanges should be held regularly to connect the Vietnamese in Switzerland and encourage their contributions to the homeland.-VNA

Tra Vinh urged to be model locality in climate change response

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc suggested the Mekong Delta province of Tra Vinh strive to become a model locality in climate change response during a ceremony on April 23 celebrating the province’s 25th anniversary of reestablishment. 

The PM asked Tra Vinh to prioritise high-tech agriculture and rural development by extending links among the State, investors, farmers, scientists and banks. 

As part of improving the business climate, Tra Vinh needs to triple the number of local firms to more than 5,000 by 2020, he said, adding that environmental protection and support for families of war heroes are also important. 

He expressed his belief that the provincial Party Committee, authorities and people will stay united to make socio-economic breakthroughs, contributing to the success of the Resolution adopted by the 12th National Party Congress and the 10th Resolution by the provincial Party Committee. 

On the occasion, the government leader presented the Independence Order, first class, to the provincial Party Committee, authorities and people, the second time Tra Vinh has been honoured with a noble distinction of the Party and State. 

During a working session with provincial authorities the same day, he hailed the province for encouraging results in rural development, elementary education popularisation and social investment. 

On socio-economic development measures, the leader said that agriculture remains a mainstay, specifically hi-quality and high-yield rice.

Thanks to its extensive coverage area, Tra Vinh could boost intensive shrimp farming by adopting technological advances to improve productivity, he said, adding that more attention should be paid to fruit cultivation, cow farming, fisheries and tourism. 

Underscoring the importance of industries to job creation and State budget collection, he requested the province develop the processing industry and clean energy industry. 

The province must pool all resources for development by diversifying investment, improving the business climate and facilitating start-ups, he said.

He also placed importance on ethnic and religious affairs, reducing the rate of poor and near-poor households and ensuring social welfare for all citizens.

Lying between the Co Chien and Hau rivers, Tra Vinh boasts a 65km coastline and 200km riverside line and nearly 80 percent of its land coverage is used for agriculture and fisheries. The local economy grew 10.26 percent last year.

Int’l sand sculpture championship runs for first time in Vietnam

A handful of world-leading female sand sculptors are showcasing their flair at an international championship taking place for the first time in Vietnam.

The World Female Sand Sculptor Championship is organized from April 19 to May 2 at Forgotten Land Sand Sculpture Park in Phan Thiet, a beloved resort town in the south-central province of Binh Thuan.

The competition, themed “Fairy Tales and Legends of Vietnam and the World,” attracts eight world-renowned artists from the U.S., Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain, Australia, Latvia and Canada.

Among them, Latvian sculptor Agnese Rudzite Kirillova has claimed several coveted prizes, including the first place at the International Sand Sculpture Festival held in three consecutive years, 2013, 2014 and 2015, in Sweden, Russia and Latvia.

“Sand sculpting remains in its infancy in Vietnam. The craft is generally associated with such materials as stone and wood,” Le Anh Tuan, head of the organizing board, said.

“Sand sculpture does not last long, but is rather artistically momentary. We thus invite foreign artists to demolish old ones and create a new batch of works on an annual or biennial basis,” he added.

The statues are crafted from red sand, which does not exist in abundance in Vietnam.

The eye-catching red sand, which makes unique dunes and adds tourism appeal in Phan Thiet, boasts a highly smooth texture and firm adhesion when poured into wooden frames and compressed into solid lumps, Tuan explained. 

“Sand sculpting requires good finance, proper materials, high techniques, great passion and artistic creativeness. Most Vietnamese artists wish to create lifelong works, not ephemeral sand statues,” he further explained about the absence of Vietnamese sculptors at the event.

“As sand sculptors are so hard to come by in Vietnam, we host the competition partly to promote the art to those interested across the country,” he noted.

Activists dedicated to conserving endangered doucs in Danang

Over the past few years, a group of veterinary engineers and volunteers have been devoted to the rescue and care of animals, particularly the endangered red-shanked doucs, found on Son Tra Peninsula in the central Vietnamese city of Danang

GreenViet, a Vietnamese animal rights group founded in 2012, has been conducting research and raising people’s awareness of the biodiversity in the central region and the Central Highlands, particularly in conserving the red-shanked douc population on Son Tra.

The peninsula, known for its pristine beauty and vast expanses of natural forest, used to shield the city from typhoons, sustain eco-tourism and provide shelter for national defense.   

Considered the ‘queen’ of the primate world, the red-shanked douc, or vooc ngu sac in Vietnamese, boasts a distinctive coat of five different colors.

The animal usually sports maroon-red ‘stockings’ from its knees to its ankles, and appears to wear white forearm length gloves. Its look is accentuated by black hands and feet.

The primate is listed in Vietnam’s Red Book and is on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List of Threatened Species.

Spurred by nagging questions as to why Vietnam has perennially fallen back on support from international organizations in conserving its forests and wildlife, several young experts and volunteers have teamed up to form the GreenViet Biological Diversity Conservation Center.  

Members have worked in a small, two-story house at the foot of Son Tra Mountain for more than five years now.

Bui Van Tuan, 31, head of GreenViet’s research department, revealed that the office is also his home.

The residence has become more and more cramped as it houses a growing number of animal conservation activities.

“We scientists wish to have our voices heard for the common sake, and hopefully our efforts will help turn Da Nang into a livable city conducive to sustainable tourism development,” Tuan said.

Though the GreenViet founders have doted on the doucs as the main beneficiary of their conservation drive, they still focus attention on how to cushion the peninsula’s entire ecosystem and wildlife from harm.

According to the center’s statistics, Son Tra features one of the country’s most diverse and unique tropical ecosystems, with currently up to 985 species of plant, 287 types of mammal and 115 varieties of bird, along with a rich marine life.

GreenViet was founded in late 2012, and is managed by the Da Nang Union of Scientific and Technical Associations.

The center began with just five members, led by Tran Huu Vy, now its director; and Dr. Ha Thang Long, representative of the Frankfurt Zoological Society, an international conservation organization established in 1858 with headquarters in Frankfurt and Main, Germany.

“We are all dedicated to the job out of our love for animals. We sometimes work elsewhere to cover the center’s expenses in times of no funding,” Vy said. 

The team tried hard to popularize the image of the red-shanked doucs to the owners of local hotels, restaurants and cafés, many of whom bluntly drove them away with excuses that the visual presentation of a monkey brings nothing but bad luck.

They also pitched tents on mountains for six months in order to keep close track of the primates.

The team’s hard-earned successes have exceeded their expectations, as residents and agencies have been increasingly aware of the doucs’ presence after only five years, whereas their original goal was the year 2020.

The municipal Party Committee has also decided to use the endangered red-shanked douc as the symbol for the 2017 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum it is hosting later this year.

The image of the cuddly primate has made its way to the city’s other major events, and was featured in interesting souvenirs for athletes after the 5th Asian Beach Games was hosted in Da Nang last year.

It was also seen on 25 bus stops and on 100,000 lucky money packs during the Tet (Lunar New Year) holiday.

Tuan, an active, long-standing member, is currently reviewing for a scholarship to Germany, where he will delve into the world of animal sounds.

The young scientist made a hard decision not to take up an internship program on doucs’ DNA in Germany in February 2016, when he and his colleagues ventured into forests to snap photos and meticulously record illegally felled patches of forest on Son Tra Peninsula, which he published in a series of revealing posts on Facebook.

The revelations caught local authorities’ attention and prompted them to take action.

Following a Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper article revealing the illegal tree-felling, several officials involved were removed from their posts while implicated staff were transferred to other locations.

Right after gaining the exposure, Tuan was constantly intimidated via text messages on his phone.

Tuan and other volunteers also went to great lengths to pick up doucs’ droppings in the forests for months.

“Some mischievous, frisky langurs even defecate and urinate on our heads and then quickly take flight,” Tuan said.

He has also painstakingly frozen the excrements at minus 190 degrees Celsius and completed complicated procedures to send them to the U.S. for detailed analysis. 

After months of long hard work, the GreenViet researchers had an article published in a U.S. scientific journal.

Le Trang, a fresh graduate in waste treatment from a local university, is in charge of community education activities on wildlife protection.

She regularly screens documentaries featuring the doucs to school students and residents at the center.

The young engineer recently got the nod from the municipal Department of Education and Training to screen the documentary at local schools.

“Following recent incidents, we now have new partners, including the government, who are ready to take the necessary action, and of course many nature lovers,” Vy, GreenViet’s director, added.

According to the conservationists, the zoning plan for 2025-30 for Son Tra, which earmarks space for tourism projects and economic growth, will take a heavy toll on the peninsula’s wildlife.

“If project developers, local authorities, residents and scientists are willing to sit down and discuss, I’m positive they will come up with the best decision for Son Tra and the animals will survive,” he noted.

Late last month, the municipal Party Committee required a local firm to dismantle a resort project that had been built without proper permits on Son Tra Peninsula.

Thanh Hoa marks 110th anniversary of Sam Son tourism

The north central coastal province of Thanh Hoa recently held a ceremony to mark the 110th anniversary of Sam Son seaside tourism.

The event marked the upgrade of Sam Son town to a city in Thanh Hoa province following a resolution adopted by the 14th National Assembly Standing Committee.

Addressing the ceremony on April 22, Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue said Thanh Hoa should aim to create unique tourism products and brand names.

The province and Sam Son city need to increase investment attraction from different economic sectors, build tourism infrastructure, improve quality of human resources and create a safe and civilised tourism environment, he added.

Thanh Hoa must become a key national tourism hub to help the country’s tourism industry realise its target of becoming a spearhead economic sector by 2020, he noted.

Vice Chairman of the National Assembly Uong Chung Luu handed over the Resolution of the NA Standing Committee to establish Sam Son city to local authorities.

The city covers an area of 44.94 square kilometers with a population of 150,902 and 11 administrative units at communal level, including eight wards of Bac Son, Trung Son, Truong Son, Quang Tien, Quang Cu, Quang Chau, Quang Tho and Quang Vinh, and communes Quang Minh, Quang Hung, and Quang Dai.

Sam Son city together with Thanh Hoa city and Nghi Son economic zone will form a development triangle.

The city is expected to be one of 12 key national tourism cities according to the national tourism development master plan through 2020 and with a vision towards 2030.

Located 16 km from the central city of Thanh Hoa to the east, the coastal city of Sam Son is home to various forms of tourism such as marine tourism, eco-tourism, and resort tourism.

In 2016, Sam Son welcomed 4.1 million tourists and grossed 2.85 trillion VND (125.4 million USD) in revenue.

The 110th anniversary of Sam Son tourism is crucial to promote local cultural and historical values to domestic and international friends.

A highlight of the event was an art programme with the participation of nearly 400 professional and amateur artists in and out of the province, featuring the formation and development of Sam Son over the past 110 years.
     
From lab cleaner to published biotechnologist: story of a female scientist

Still in her thirties, Truong Hai Nhung has already earned a PhD in human and animal physiology, authored works for 34 international and national publications and seminar reports, though her road to success was not always a bed of roses.

Last year, Nhung was honored with Vietnam’s Golden Globe Award, an annual award presented to ten young Vietnamese under 35 in recognition of their exceptional contributions in science and technology.

Now vice-dean of the Faculty of Biology and Biotechnology at the Ho Chi Minh City University of Science and deputy head of the university’s laboratory for stem cell research and application, Nhung says her passion for the field developed during her time spent working in the lab as a sophomore.

After two failed attempts at applying to medical school, Nhung chose to trade medicine for biotechnology, a decision which proved to be truly life-changing.

The knowledge-thirsty girl quickly found footing in her new dream, consistently ranking at the top of her class and often being recognized for her outstanding academic performance.

In her second year, Nhung and a friend wrote a heartfelt letter asking to work at the university’s laboratory.

“It was a bold move, but I was so thrilled by the prospect that I couldn’t refrain myself,” Nhung recalled.

Phan Kim Ngoc, the lab’s head, said she first viewed Nhung’s application with reluctance, assuming the young sophomore girl was too weak for the physically demanding job.

“I intended to talk her out of it by telling her that the job involved a lot of hard work and would require her attention day and night,” Ngoc said.

But Nhung’s determination finally won Ngoc over and she was permitted to work in the laboratory cleaning test tubes.

Despite being assigned a relatively unimportant task, Nhung says her time spent observing the different experiments being conducted in the lab was eye-opening and inspiring.

After graduating with honors, Nhung was offered a teaching and research job at the university, as well as the opportunity to enroll in its human and animal physiology master’s and doctoral degree programs.

“I sometimes envy my friends with high-paying jobs,” Nhung admitted. “But I’ve never regretted pursuing a research career. Working in the lab alongside dedicated colleagues brings me a kind of joy that can’t be found elsewhere.”

Nhung spent two years between 2014 and 2016 working on a state-sponsored study on the isolation and utilization of immune cells to treat breast cancer, a new method that will soon undergo clinical trials and eventually be used in real-life treatment in Vietnam.

The 32-year-old biotechnologist is now working on another major project involving the use of stem cell technology to treat cirrhosis.

“Cirrhosis is a highly fatal disease and scientists have yet to identify a truly effective treatment,” Nhung said. Our study so far has demonstrated that stem cells are safe and effective in treating cirrhosis in animals. We expect to use the treatment in human trials soon.”

Having been married for seven years and a mother to a five-year-old son, Nhung says the most difficult part of being both a scientist and mother is finding the balance between work and family.

“I always have an internal struggle over whether I’ve fulfilled my duties as a researcher, professor, and mother,” Nhung admitted. “I’ve learned to divide my time evenly among the three, but it’s never truly enough.”

Comparing her current self to ten years ago, Nhung admits that she is often worried and stressed by pressure from work and family.

“Sometimes I think to myself that having a family is stressful, but it helps to see it as a responsibility rather than a burden,” Nhung said. “I chose a path for myself. Whether that path is easy or difficult is my choice to make.” 

VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/TT/TN/Dantri/VNE